The Lobos improved to 2-1 on the season after their 84-71 win against Sacramento State on Saturday. The Lobos were able to play to their strengths against Sacramento State and will look to continue to do that tonight and during the rest of this season. The Lobos will return to action Tuesday night against Nicholls State, from the Southland Conference, who are 1-1 on the young season. This will be the second of four straight home games for the Lobos this week, as they host the Thanksgiving Tournament this Friday and Saturday. The Lobos still haven’t lost in the PIT since the name changed to WisePies Arena and the streak should continue tonight.

Nicholls State:

The Colonels are coached by eight year Head Coach DoBee Plaisance and are coming off a 17-13 season, in which the finished with a 13-5 record in Southland Conference play. However, the Colonels will be a different team from last season, returning only one starter to the team. The Colonels, who play a seven-player rotation, will be relying on four freshmen to make an impact on their team, three of whom are expected to start tonight. Through two games, their leading scorer is RS Junior Hope Pawlowski, who has scored 17 points in each of the first two games. Pawlowski is coming off a season averaging 4.4, so it will be interesting to see if the first two games are a sign of things to come for her and her team this season. It will be interesting to see how the freshmen on their roster will react to playing in front of six thousand fans for the first road game of their college careers.

Starting Five and Rotation:

Coach Sanchez and the Lobos have used a different starting line up each of the first three games of the season, but it is pretty clear who four of the starters are going to be this season. With Owens, Otto, Beynon and Shumpert, the only spot that has changed so far this season is the starting center. I wouldn’t be surprised if it will continue to change for most of the season, as Coach Sanchez has a lot of different ways she can go with that spot and I wouldn’t be surprised if it will be matchup driven. Right now, the Lobos have nine players averaging double-digit minutes and that doesn’t include last year starter Alexa Chavez and freshman Emily Lines. The starting lineup and the rotation will be very interesting to watch the rest of this year, seeing who earns their minutes and their spot in the rotation.

Player to Watch:

I will be watching to see how Jannon Otto plays after her best performance as a Lobo this past Saturday against Sacramento State. Otto, who had 16 points on 12 shots and grabbed four rebounds in her 20 minutes of action, was great to see. It is a performance that she should be able to build on, and prove that she can be an impact freshman for this Lobo team. To me, it is just a matter of time before she has a 20-plus point performance where she showcases her whole offensive game.

Different Styles of Play:

I think that it is safe to say that the Lobos will not play another team like Sacramento State this season. Sacramento State shot 47 three pointers in Saturdays game, bringing their average to around 40 3-point attempts per game. Nicholls State in their first two games have shot a total of 20 3-point attempts. Nicholls State has valued the shots that they take and are shooting a great 49.6% from the field so far this season, including 40% from 3. Because of this difference in style of play the Lobos are playing in back-to-back games, they need to force Nicholls State into bad shots, compared to just making sure Sacramento State didn’t get wide open 3-point attempts. Something that will be nice for the Lobos in tonight’s game they won’t face the tempo and pressure that they had to face on Saturday.

Prediction:

Since Nicholls State had almost a full roster turnover, it is hard to tell how good of a team they are. It is also their first road game of the season, which makes it even harder to tell how their freshmen are going to play. The Lobos are the heavy favorite in this game, but that doesn’t mean that they can just show up at play pick-up basketball. The Lobos need to put pressure on the Colonels early and don’t allow them to think they have a realistic chance to win the game. To do this, it will be very important for the Lobos to get a double-digit lead right off the bat. I put the odds of the Lobos winning this game at 88% and have them running a way with a 77-58 victory.

Game Info:

Who: New Mexico 2-1 VS Nicholls State 1-1

Where: WisePies Arena AKA The PIT; Albuquerque, New Mexico

When: Tuesday November 24th 7 PM MT

Radio: 610 AM

TV: MountainWest Network